The Fight, Flight, and Freeze Instinct (As An Author)

There is an experience that every writer I've ever spoken to has had, but a lot of us don't talk about it. Namely that, when we're faced with actually putting words on the page, most of us have one of three reactions... fight, flight, or freeze. You might be familiar with these reactions, and the various ways they can play out, but in the event you aren't, I wanted to talk about them in an open, honest way. Because while a lot of us may settle on one standard response eventually, most of us will go through these stages at one time or another. We may even have different reactions to different projects, or different situations and sets of circumstances!

It's coming right for us!

Before we get into it this week, don't forget to sign up for my weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron! To be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree!

Lastly, make sure you check out my Vocal archive for several hundred other articles about geek ephemera, weird history, writing, and more!

The Stress Responses of Writers

As human beings, when we're faced with dangerous situations, the millennia-old software that runs our skull jelly kicks in and activates our instincts to preserve ourselves. The problem is that, while these reactions were originally created to help us deal with snakes and tigers, we can often regard our own manuscripts as dangerous threats in the here and now. As a result, trying to sit down and work might lead us to experience several different stress reactions. The ones I've come across include:

#1: Fight

This is, quite honestly, my most common reaction to most stress situations, work included. If I have a project that's stressing me out (deadline is fast approaching, I don't like the way that it's shaping up, or I feel it's not quite in-hand) then the most likely course of action is that I'll brew myself a cup of coffee, boot up the program, and hammer on it until I am satisfied with my progress. Or until it's done.

Honestly, this recent video of mine over on the Azukail Games YouTube channel (which you should check out if you haven't) is probably one of the best examples of this tendency. I ran into a slew of technical issues with it, and it just frustrated me. I could have allotted some time to fix one thing at a time, taking care of it over a week or so, but when it didn't do what I wanted I decided that I wasn't going to bed until it was done. I was up till 3 in the morning, but I slept the sleep of the exhausted and the righteous, my enemy defeated. The story is from my TTRPG supplement Guilds of Sundara, and if it sounds like something you'd enjoy, grab a copy for either Pathfinder or Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition.

Fight definitely has advantages, namely that if you're the sort of person who tends to come out swinging, it can be very invigorating to feel like you're doing something, and taking on a problem. However, it can consume your attention, taking time away from other projects and responsibilities, leaving you spent and exhausted when you may have had other things that also required your time and attention. Pick your battles if this is a response you have to your writing, and learn to make it work for you.

#2: Flight

There are a lot of folks for whom the best part of writing is all the foreplay. There's the sudden spark of the idea, the world building, the character crafting, putting together story arcs, motivations, weird science, and magic systems. But when it comes time to sit down and write, now the fun part is over; now it's time to actually work.

Escapism is the main thing that a lot of writers do when we get stressed, and if working on one story is not giving us the dopamine anymore, our brains will often try to recapture that rush by doing the same thing with another story instead. This is why a lot of writers will be super enthusiastic about an idea, potentially for years, only to suddenly drop it and move on to something else when they hit a rough patch during the actual writing process that stops them from getting the same fulfillment that it was bringing in the earlier stages.

If this is the way your brain reacts, don't fret. Sometimes it's good to let yourself have a little extra worldbuilding or book plotting as a treat, and this is doubly true if you are the kind of writer that finds fulfillment in these activities. However, it's important to remember not to let yourself get so wrapped up in this other project that you abandon the one you were previously working on. Or, put another way, you should have an occasional cookie, but don't eat the whole pack of them instead of cooking dinner.

Lastly, while this behavior can be disastrous if you intend to be a professional writer, don't beat yourself up if you're just doing this for fun. If you're the only person you're accountable to, then try to keep a little perspective, and be kind to yourself.

#3: Freeze

This is one of the most difficult responses I've seen creators of all types deal with when it comes to stress from their work. It usually happens because they've talked a big game about a project, or they've finally given themselves a deadline, and now this story has become real in a way it wasn't before. There are actual stakes now, and there's a cost that comes if you don't actually finish it. Either you lose out on a check, you disappoint your audience, or you're going to take a hit to your reputation if you don't deliver.

And that can make a lot of us freeze.

This is honestly a problem I had when writing both Blackest Knights and The Final Lamentation this past year. Originally, both of these stories were proposed to the audience for the YouTube channel A Vox in The Void (whom you should go listen to, as several of my stories have been featured there over the past few years), and the audience chose what they wanted to see next. And knowing there was not just a handful of folks, but literally hundreds of people who had weighed in on what stories they wanted to see next, and who were now waiting for me to deliver? I've written 4 novels, 2 short story collections, run 2 blogs for a decade each, and I've been writing professionally for basically my entire adult life... and I'm not going to lie, that put some pressure on me.

I'm very fortunate that the freeze didn't last long (largely because it frustrated me, and that activated my fight response), but the idea of an audience that was actually expecting my work did give me a few days where putting words on the page felt like I was fighting against a higher gravity than normal. In the end I'm glad I pushed through it, but I can also acknowledge that it was at least partially because of all the experience I have as a writer, and that I've got a lot of tips and tricks in my toolbox to help me get past paralysis.

As with the other reactions, take a deep breath. Focus. Be kind to yourself. To use my favorite analogy, if you were lifting a heavy weight, and you felt your grip slip, or your balance go wrong, you should put down the weight for a bit. Dust off your hands, take a drink of water, and come back to it with a stronger, surer grip. Or if you feel something in your muscles twinge in a way it shouldn't, don't be afraid to put it down, and take the rest of the day. It's better to let yourself rest, and recuperate, so you can come back to a project soon, than to strain yourself the wrong way and need far more recovery time than you anticipated.

Support The Literary Mercenary

For folks who just want to do their part to help keep me making more content, please subscribe/follow me in these locations:

- My Facebook

- My LinkTree

- My Weekly Newsletter

- The Azukail Games YouTube Channel (where I contribute video content)

- My Rumble Channel (longer videos that won't show up on YouTube)

And if you happen to have some spare dosh lying around, and you want to be sure my supply doesn't run low, consider become a Patreon patron, or leaving a tip by Buying Me a Ko-Fi!

Like, Follow, and Come Back Again!

That's all for this week's Craft of Writing! For more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, or at My Amazon Author Page where you can find books like my sci-fi dystopian thriller Old Soldiers, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife, or my most recent short story collection The Rejects!

 

And to stay on top of all my latest news and releases, collected once a week, make sure you subscribe to The Literary Mercenary's mailing list. 

If you'd like to help support my work, then consider Buying Me A Ko-Fi, or heading over to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page! Lastly, to keep up with my latest, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now on Pinterest as well!

What Do Creators Do When The Grind Grinds You Down?

There has been a single, constant refrain from most folks who get to see behind the curtain of what it takes me to make a living as an author. Everyone, without fail, tells me that I need to take time for myself. That I can't be working all the time, or I'm going to overheat my engine and explode. At best, I'll get burned out, and at worst I'm going to have a heart attack and wind up in an early grave.

And they're not wrong. The stress of having to constantly be on the grind all the time is bad for your health, both mental and physical. Even if you eat well, exercise regularly, and try to get good sleep, you need time to not be grinding.

The problem is, of course, capitalism doesn't recognize your humanity, or its attendant needs. So unless you're one of a privileged few, you wind up stuck between a rock and a hard place.

Shit is relentless, and you can't stab the sea and stop the tide.

Before we get into the nitty gritty this week, don't forget to sign up for my weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Lastly, to be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree!

Lastly, don't forget to check out my Vocal archive for additional fiction, articles, explorations of weird history, and more!

This is a Pay-To-Win Game

I want to make something very clear to folks out there. I don't take on so many projects because I'm filled with a burning desire to do a thousand things at a time, or because I have a Type A personality that simply will not allow me to take my foot off the gas. I do so much stuff because I live in poverty, and not doing these things means it's unlikely that I will have the money to keep paying my bills at the end of the month. If I didn't have to do all these things to keep my head above water, I would do less writing every day, and I would probably shift my focus to projects that I am very passionate about/interested in, but which are not big earners for me as a creator.

I know this because about 10 years ago I was making more than double what I'm making right now. And at that time I would get up, put in the articles I'd agreed to write by mid afternoon, and then I'd do something else. I'd go out to eat with friends. I'd play video games. I'd drive out to a LARP, or I'd roll some dice during a board game night, etc. For a while I even had a weekly sword fighting meetup that I'd go to, and I could spontaneously take trips to go see people just because I missed them. Because money buys you time, and opportunity.

I did not dedicate every minute of every day to working on new projects when I didn't have to. I still wrote short stories, I still planned out novels, and I still made notes on script ideas, but I wasn't hammering on them all day, every day like a madman. More importantly, though, I didn't have anxiety that kept me up into the wee hours of the morning, and which jolted me out of bed because the sun had risen, and it was time to put the pedal back to the metal until my tank was utterly out of gas again.

Let's get this bread...

I say this because I want to frontload an important point, here. The amount of stress that creatives you know are under is, 9 times out of 10, about money. Because if we had money, it would solve a majority of our stresses, and fix so many of our problems. Because the more money you have on-hand (or the more your work regularly earns you), the less you have to worry about it. When something goes wrong with your teeth, you can call the dentist. When something goes wrong with your car, you can take it to the shop. When you're hungry you can ask, "What do I want to eat?" and not "How can I make that pack of Ramen taste different than the last 6 I've eaten this week?"

So if you've wanted to ask how you can help your creative friends feel less burned out, the top answer is going to be, "Give them money and/or support so they don't have to work so damn hard." If you can afford to become a patron on Patreon, or to tip them on Ko-Fi, do that. If you want to get them a gift, or take them out for lunch some time, do that. If you want more people to see their work then leave reviews on their books, share their articles and blogs, on your social media, and use your voice to help them be seen. For those who are interested in numbers, I have a pretty good break down in If 90,000 People Read This Article, I Can Pay My Bills This Month.

Because everything else that comes after our concerns about earnings and money is just, "How to distract yourself from the fact that you don't have enough resources to live your life the way you want to."

And for folks who like my work, and are wondering if I have a collection of links all in one place so you don't have to go search, I do! So consider supporting me at the following:

- My Facebook

- My LinkTree

- My Weekly Newsletter

- The Azukail Games YouTube Channel (where I contribute video content)

- My Rumble Channel (longer videos that won't show up on YouTube)

And if you happen to have some spare dosh lying around, and you want to be sure my supply doesn't run low, consider become a Patreon patron, or leaving a tip by Buying Me a Ko-Fi!

With That Out Of The Way...

With that said, if you can't just write a book that becomes an instant bestseller, or post a video that goes viral and makes you an overnight sensation, there are some things you can do to help stave off that grinder. This isn't a complete list, obviously, but these are the things I do to help me stay as even as I can while dodging the stamping boots of capitalism.

#1: Take Care of Yourself

This is easier said than done, but it goes a long way. First of all, drink water. I know that we all live off of Mountain Dew and coffee in the creative fields, but please, I'm begging you, alternate your drinks so you're properly hydrated. It really does do wonders for you. Beyond drinking enough water, try to get some exercise every day (whatever form works best for you). I'm fortunate enough that my apartment complex has an on-site workout room that I can use whenever I want to, but even just going for a walk, doing a yoga routine, or some body weight lifts can help reduce stress and clear your mind. Sleep as best you can, and don't be afraid to use some tea, warm milk, or a melatonin tablet if you need to.

If you aren't up to a challenge physically, that will make everything ten times harder, and this stuff is hard enough as it is.

#2: Make Opportunities For Your Passions

Again, this feels like something that's a pie-in-the-sky scenario for a lot of us. After long days of working on a dozen projects, where are you supposed to get the time and energy to just do one more thing?

For me, this comes down to finding some way to turn something I want to do into at best a tax-deductible expense, or at best a paying opportunity so that I can justify spending resources and time to make it happen.

As a for-instance, any convention where I volunteer for programming, hand out business cards, etc., becomes a business expense. Mileage, ticket costs, meals, hotel room, etc., are all things I can claim at the end of the year. Not perfect, but it does allow me to attend events I otherwise wouldn't because they're just self-indulgent, or I want to see my friends. Alternatively, I really like making audio dramas. I couldn't justify the half dozen hours even a small snippet took to make, but when I reached out to Azukail Games and they hired me to turn my fiction vignettes into audio dramas for the Azukail Games YouTube channel (which you should check out and subscribe to), suddenly this thing I didn't have time for could be made a priority because it came with a check.

This can be difficult, but it never hurts to use the network and connections you have to try to get more personal enjoyment out of the work you do. And sometimes this can result in you finding a new niche, growing as a creator, and really enjoying your work in a way you weren't before. Even if you can't reduce your workload, finding work you feel motivated to do helps a lot. Variety helps, too, so if you're getting bored doing one thing, try some sideways thinking to see if there's a way you could change things up without damaging your bottom line.

#3: Allow Yourself To Be Entertained

I don't have a single subscription to a single streaming service. I flat-out can't afford them, and I know there's a lot of other creative folks out there who are in the same boat. However, diversion and entertainment are key to not overloading your brain, and you need to make time to just sit back, and enjoy things sometimes.

Fortunately, there are options out there for free stuff all over the place.

First and foremost, check your local library to see what services they offer. A lot of them have apps these days that allow you to check out ebooks and digital audio books right to your devices, which can make everything from riding the bus to going to sleep a lot better. YouTube is also full of great content you can just binge at will, and if you are a fan of independent narration, I'd recommend checking out A Vox in The Void, as well as Warrior Tier for those who really enjoy Warhammer 40K content. If you live in an area where there's local events then you may have free concerts, movie screenings, and a dozen other things going on as well. There's online roleplaying groups, watch parties, and all sorts of other activities you can do, too!

As always, there's the matter of time, convenience, and how much energy you can put in. But sometimes you just need to put in some headphones and listen to a new album, or catch up on some creepy pastas while going on an evening walk, to recharge your batteries just a little.

Wars Aren't Won on a Single Charge

With a dramatic few exceptions, your career isn't going to explode overnight. Most of us won't make something that goes viral, or become massive bestsellers. Changes take time as we build our archives, find our audience, try new things, and so on. While the best way to help the creators you want to see succeed is to give them any and all support you can, it's also important that when you're down in the trench that you do the best you can with what you have. Change your socks so you don't get trench foot. Drink tea or coffee in between shellings. Take a bite of chocolate every now and again.

You have to keep up your strength so that you can keep the pressure on when it matters. Be as kind to yourself as the conditions allow you to be.

Like, Follow, and Stay Tuned!

That's all for this week's Business of Writing!

If you'd like to see more of my work, take a look at my Vocal archive, or at My Amazon Author Page where you can find books like my sci fi dystopian thriller Old Soldiers, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife as well as my recent collection The Rejects! You can also check out my Rumble channel The Literary Mercenary for free audio dramas!

If you'd like to help support my work, then consider Buying Me A Ko-Fi, or heading over to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page! Lastly, to keep up with my latest, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now on Pinterest as well!

The Ur Challenge (Mixing and Matching Genre and Author)

Back when the kindle was young, and reading off of portable computers was the new hot trend, Stephen King wrote a short story titled Ur. This short story was about a college professor who, out of spite at his ex, finally broke down and ordered a kindle of his own. However, while all kindles at the time were white, this one was pink. Not only that, but when he bought books to add to it, they were never actually charged to his card.

Without giving too many spoilers, he soon realizes there is something unique about this kindle... namely that it can access books written in other dimensions! These other Urs, as they're called, give us some strange insight into what people may be reading in the world next door. A notable example of which is the idea of a Hemmingway that wrote pot boiler crime novels... it's still definitely his work and style, but something so utterly unexpected that it makes you scratch your head wondering what that would be like.

For writers out there, I'm referring to this as the Ur Challenge, and I got the idea from Oxford Royale.

Let's get strange with this!

Before we get into it this week, don't forget to sign up for my weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron! To be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree!

Lastly, make sure you check out my Vocal archive for several hundred other articles about geek ephemera, weird history, writing, and more!

What Styles and Genres Would You Mix and Match?

Folks who are fans of my work know that I am a fan of mixing and blending as much nonsense into the pot as I possibly can. Whether it's an old testament angel navigating the power games of ancient Babylonian gods in downtown L.A., or writing about a team of dishonorably discharged mercenaries taking on the horrors of Lovecraft's mythos, I like to mix and match my nonsense.

You can find those stories in The Rejects and SNAFU: An Anthology of Military Horror, for those who are curious.

While mixing and matching genres and conventions can be fun, the Ur Challenge takes things a step further. Because it's one thing to imitate the particular style and tradition of a known writer, but it's quite another to take that style, and then attempt to write a completely different genre than that author would ever have tackled.

It's kind of like Post-Modern Jukebox, but for books!

So if you need a bit of inspiration to really get your fingers tuned up for something, ask yourself how you would tackle this prompt. Would you try to write a bodice-ripping romance in the style of H.P. Lovecraft? A post-apocalyptic tale of survival if it were told by Arthur Conan Doyle? A gritty private detective story with all the purple prose of Robert Howard? They sky is the limit, but the very concept can really get your mind moving, so I thought I'd share it this week!

Support The Literary Mercenary

For folks who just want to do their part to help keep me making more content, please subscribe/follow me in these locations:

- My Facebook

- My LinkTree

- My Weekly Newsletter

- The Azukail Games YouTube Channel (where I contribute video content)

- My Rumble Channel (longer videos that won't show up on YouTube)

And if you happen to have some spare dosh lying around, and you want to be sure my supply doesn't run low, consider become a Patreon patron, or leaving a tip by Buying Me a Ko-Fi!

Like, Follow, and Come Back Again!

That's all for this week's Craft of Writing! For more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, or at My Amazon Author Page where you can find books like my sci-fi dystopian thriller Old Soldiers, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife, or my most recent short story collection The Rejects!

 

And to stay on top of all my latest news and releases, collected once a week, make sure you subscribe to The Literary Mercenary's mailing list. 

If you'd like to help support my work, then consider Buying Me A Ko-Fi, or heading over to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page! Lastly, to keep up with my latest, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now on Pinterest as well!

The Steven Seagal Effect (Because It Takes Someone Else To Make You Famous)

If you've watched more than the 3 or 4 Steven Segal movies that are actually enjoyable, you've probably noticed that he isn't much of an actor, or an onscreen presence. And if you've listened to any of the behind-the-scenes stories about him, he appears to be a bully, a misogynist, a homophone, and he has both physically and sexually assaulted a huge number of people. You add in his cozying up to dictators, his likely ties to organized crime, and more, and you might wonder how the hell a man like this ever rose (even briefly) to the top ranks of Hollywood action stars.

Well, if Hollywood legend and Fact Fiend are to be believed, it's due to a guy named Michael Ovitz.

We're talking about the Hollywood machine, but rest assured, this applies to writers as well.

Before we get into the nitty gritty this week, don't forget to sign up for my weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Lastly, to be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree!

Lastly, don't forget to check out my Vocal archive for additional fiction, articles, explorations of weird history, and more!

The Myth of The Kingmaker

If you've never heard of Michael Ovitz, it's probably because you're not the sort of person who pays attention to the doings in Hollywood. However, with a roster consisting of a real who's-who of actors, directors, etc., Ovitz was thought of by many as a super agent. He had a real talent for finding people, and turning them into stars that dominated the box office.

And according to the stories told about Mr. Seagal, Ovitz is the reason he had a movie career at all.

Because we're about to get into a story of ego, power, and influence.

As the stories go, Mr. Ovitz had quite a high opinion of himself, and his abilities. An opinion backed up by results, but a high opinion all the same. He even went so far as to boast that he could make anyone a star. No matter how unpleasant, how unlikable, or how uncharismatic they were, he could make it happen. This supposedly got a little out-of-hand, and someone bet him to prove it.

And it just so happened that at the time, Seagal was Ovitz's personal trainer, as well as being one of the more uninteresting and unlikable people he knew.

In Seagal's own words, he had no real interest in acting at the time Ovitz picked him to use in this bet. But Ovitz made him the offer, laid out a handful of scripts, and told him whatever one he picked they would get made, and he would be the star. And this led to Seagal starring in the film Above The Law. Which, if you've seen it, does not scream "new action hero of a generation".

Seagal did become famous though. Film after film came out with his name on them (also due mostly to the influence of his agent), and even to this day he produces tons of direct-to-DVD garbage. This illustrates an important point. In short, even if someone has no talent, no charisma, and the work they produce is drek, if you put someone's name in front of an audience's eyes enough times, they're almost bound to succeed... sometimes even despite themselves.

What This Has To Do With Authors

Now, as I said, the above account of events is a long-time Hollywood rumor. However, it also illustrates a very important point when it comes to being an author. Namely that it doesn't matter how much talent, drive, dedication, skill, or charisma you do or don't have, if no one knows your name, and your work doesn't get pushed into the spotlight somehow.

Numbers... it all comes back to numbers...

Consider, for a moment, the sheer amount of pull, power, and influence that having a big-name publisher at your back can have. Because if your company decides they're going to make you famous, they could pick up the phone and get you on TV shows, popular podcasts, talk radio, and a variety of other venues. They can put commercials for your book on TV, they can reach out to reviewers at important publications, and they can make deals with bookstores to ensure that you are front-and-center in their store setup.

They can make it all but impossible for you to fail, in terms of sales figures and return on investment.

Even if your book is middle of the road, or outright bad, that amount of hype is going to draw people to it. And there are going to be people in that audience who like it, and become fans of yours. If the numbers get big enough, you may even get a movie, TV, or streaming deal out of it. But don't forget that your sales numbers are not a reflection of your skill, craft, or story. Sure, all of those things help, but how well you sell is (more often than not) a reflection of the amount of resources put into promoting you.

And that is why when you're a self-published author, or you're published by a small company, you basically have to depend on social media, creative marketing, and the support of your audience.

It's All Up To You, The Readers

I know this is a soap box I climb up onto in most of my blog entries, but it's a message that not a lot of people seem to understand. Because most of us as authors aren't going to be lucky enough for a super agent, or a huge publisher, to pluck us up and decide to make us into the next big thing. As such, we need people to all combine their voices, and help us claw our way up onto that kind of platform so that people can find out about our work, and we can keep doing what we do.

As an example...

Take my novel Old Soldiers. Novus Mundi is a relatively small press, so they can't exactly act as a kingmaker, even if they did give me a great new cover, and a snazzy blurb to re-invigorate my novel's second release. However, of the folks on my social media lists who've seen it, let's say that even 500 of them got copies. E-books or paperback, both are equally acceptable for this example. Now, that's not a lot of sales when compared to what big publishers can manage (though it would be a lot for me), but let's say that each of those people also left me an Amazon review, and shared it on their social media platform of choice.

That would be colossal in terms of giving me a boost. Not only would that mean I'd have a pretty sizable royalty check (likely the biggest I've ever received), but Amazon starts promoting your book when it hits 50 reviews... so if it had 500 reviews, that would kick the algorithm into gear, and make sure my book started showing up on all kinds of people's shopping pages. At that point the rolling stone could potentially cause an avalanche as more people check it out, tell their friends and family members about it, and so on, and so forth.

A lot of small actions, if they happen close together, can be the boost we need. Just something to keep in mind.

Support The Literary Mercenary

For folks who just want to do their part to help keep me making more content, please subscribe/follow me in these locations:

- My Facebook

- My LinkTree

- My Weekly Newsletter

- The Azukail Games YouTube Channel (where I contribute video content)

- My Rumble Channel (longer videos that won't show up on YouTube)

And if you happen to have some spare dosh lying around, and you want to be sure my supply doesn't run low, consider become a Patreon patron, or leaving a tip by Buying Me a Ko-Fi!

Like, Follow, and Stay Tuned!

That's all for this week's Business of Writing!

If you'd like to see more of my work, take a look at my Vocal archive, or at My Amazon Author Page where you can find books like my sci fi dystopian thriller Old Soldiers, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife as well as my recent collection The Rejects! You can also check out my Rumble channel The Literary Mercenary for free audio dramas!

If you'd like to help support my work, then consider Buying Me A Ko-Fi, or heading over to The Literary Mercenary's Patreon page! Lastly, to keep up with my latest, follow me on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and now on Pinterest as well!

As a Creator, Learn To Trust The Process

Creators are, by and large, cursed with an awareness of our own flaws... when it comes to our work, at least. While other people might read a passage and tell us how great it is, or listen to a song we wrote and gush about how much they love it, all we can see are the flaws in it. And while it is good to be honest about your work, it's also important to remember that being too critical of what you've made can often be like slamming on the brakes, preventing you from ever finishing anything.

A mantra that I've adopted for this (and that I'm sure you've all heard at least a few times in your life) is, "Trust the process." And in case you're wondering, it really does work.

As the old saying goes, you can't edit a blank page.

Before we get into it this week, don't forget to sign up for my weekly newsletter to get all my updates right in your inbox. Also, if you've got a bit of spare cash that you'd like to use to help keep the wheels turning, consider becoming a Patreon patron! To be sure you're following all of my followables, check out my LinkTree!

Lastly, make sure you check out my Vocal archive for several hundred other articles about geek ephemera, weird history, writing, and more!

Fixing It In Post

As some of my regular readers know, I've been working on audio dramas for the past year and change now. It's been a learning process as I try out different voices, different recording setups, acquire new equipment, learn new effects, and so on, and so forth. One of the biggest lessons I taught myself, though, was that when I messed up a line, or had to take a breath, or lost the character voice I was using in my reading was to just take a second, re-center myself, and do it again without scrapping the take and starting over again.

And every time I do this, I mentally tell myself, "Don't worry, I'll fix it in post."

For those who aren't familiar with this term's meaning, even if you've heard it before, "post" refers to "post-production," which means all the stuff you do to a recording after you've gotten the raw lines from your actors. It's when you cut out stumbles and stutters, remove the sounds of breath, white noise that crept into the background, etc. It's also where you add the voice effects, background music, sound effects, and all those other little elements that take a dramatic reading and turn it into an actual audio drama.

There's a lot that goes into this stage of the process, honestly... and it can be eye-opening how different the finished product will be from the raw recording you made. This is why when I'm listening to a take, even if it's not perfect, or there's little hiccoughs here and there, I no longer scrap it and start over immediately. Because even if you have humble ingredients to work with, the end result can still be great!

Also, if you want to help support bigger, more involved audio dramas from yours truly, please subscribe to the Azukail Games YouTube channel where my current pieces are, and check out "Windy City Shadows" A Chronicles of Darkness Podcast Proposal!

You Can't Edit a Blank Page

Where this all comes back around to writing again is that making these audio dramas reminded me of a lesson I learned very early on when it comes to telling stories; no matter how amazingly perfect it is in your mind, it is almost never that perfect on the page when you finally get it out. There's always going to be dialogue that feels stilted, or characters who need more development, or some scenes that just feel like filler, or plot hooks that need to be sharpened to really sink in to the reader.

Your first draft is never going to be perfect. Period, end of story. You're always going to have to fix some things in post... and you shouldn't be afraid of doing that.

Hmmm... yeah, I'm cutting this out. The café scene just isn't working.

As a whole, writers will acknowledge that editing is important. We have to do it, we say. But a lot of us don't really believe it. We think that surely our work is exemplary. Surely we'll just have a few typos, or a few grammar mistakes to fix, and that will be that. And while it's true that the more you do this, the better and better your early drafts become, you're always going to have to go through multiple stages to get the best possible result.

And sometimes when you're having trouble with a scene, or you can't get your dialogue just right, or the ending lines are giving you a fit, you just need to take a breath, re-center yourself, and say, "I'll fix it in post." Because writing a novel, just like making an audio drama, or a movie, or painting a miniature, isn't just one thing. It's a series of steps that all add up to a complete whole.

It is a process.

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That's all for this week's Craft of Writing! For more of my work, check out my Vocal archive, or at My Amazon Author Page where you can find books like my sci-fi dystopian thriller Old Soldiers, my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife, or my most recent short story collection The Rejects!

 

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